The PopWatch Confessional (Vol. 17)

Today, in honor of Jordin Sparks having to forever associate “This is My Now” with the night of her American Idol win, let’s share the ballads (inspirational and/or cheesy) that have marked moments in our lives (good and/or bad). As always, I offer a couple to get you thinking:

• Picture it: Syracuse. Fall of 1993. It’s my first night in a college dorm. My roommate and I discover we both liked Aladdin. We put on the soundtrack. And sing along to “A Whole New World.” I can’t remember if it was the movie version or the Peabo Bryson/Regina Belle cut…Shudder. We’ll never know because I can’t go back there.

• Lee Ann Womack’s “I Hope You Dance.” In 2000, I was stuck in a miserable job with an even more miserable commute home each night. This song was in radio rotation at the time — and I never changed the station. Also, a friend of mine — and it really was a friend — had just gone through a bad breakup and burst into tears when this song came on at a diner. To quote Truvy (Dolly Parton) from Steel Magnolias: “Laughter through tears is my favorite emotion.”